Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie

This article is about the movie based on both the web series and the television series. For the original web series, see Nirvana the Band the Show. For the television series, see Nirvanna the Band the Show.

Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie is a 2025 Canadian time travel mockumentary-adventure film directed by Matt Johnson from a screenplay by Johnson and Jay McCarrol. The film stars Johnson and McCarrol as fictionalised versions of themselves in a band called "Nirvanna the Band" as they attempt to book a gig at the Rivoli, a bar and restaurant in Toronto, despite the fact that they have never actually written or recorded a single song, nor taken any steps to contact the Rivoli's management about booking a show.^[1] A publicity stunt gone wrong accidentally sends Matt, Jay, and their friend/cameraman Jared back in time to the year 2008, leaving them stranded unless they can find a way to get back to the future.^[3]

Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie
Directed by	Matt Johnson
Written by	Matt Johnson[1] Jay McCarrol[1]
Based on	Nirvana the Band the Show and Nirvanna the Band the Show by Matt Johnson Jay McCaroll
Produced by	Matthew Miller[1] Matt Greyson[1]
Starring	Matt Johnson Jay McCarrol Jared Raab
Cinematography	Jared Raab[1]
Edited by	Curt Lobb[1] Robert Upchurch[1]
Music by	Jay McCarrol[1]
Production company	Telefilm Canada
Distributed by	Elevation Pictures[2]
Release date	March 9, 2025 (2025-03-09) (SXSW)
Running time	100 minutes[1]
Country	Canada
Language	English

The film is based on Johnson and McCarrol's 2007–2009 web series Nirvana the Band the Show, as well as its 2017–2018 sequel television series Nirvanna the Band the Show.

Premise

Unemployed "bandmates," best friends and fictionalized alter egos of the creators, Matt and Jay want to land a gig at The Rivoli in Toronto even though they have never done a show and have never recorded a song, but, after a failed stunt to jump off The Skydome & their new scheme, involving a DeLorean-inspired RV, they're transported to 2008 and need a bottle of Orbitz (drink) to get 'Back To The Future.'

Cast

• Matt Johnson as Matt
• Jay McCarrol as Jay
• Jared Raab as Jared

Production

Development

In May 2023, it was reported that Matt Johnson was returning to the series Nirvanna the Band the Show to make a film.^[4] The series featured on Viceland for two seasons in 2017 and 2018, continuing on CBC in 2019.^[5]

In October 2023, Johnson told the Empire Magazine Podcast that he had initially planned to film in the UK but that filming had instead got underway in the United States.^[6] Johnson was quoted as saying that the success of the 2023 film Blackberry had helped the project secure funding from Telefilm.^[7][8] In January 2025, the film was announced to be titled Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie.^[1][9][10]

A third season of the television show was filmed and partially edited but never released, as Viceland Canada shut down as a network before the season could be finished. Zapruder Films purchased the rights to the show, intending to finish and release the third season after the release of the feature film.^[11]

Release and reception

On March 9, 2025, the film premiered at the 2025 South by Southwest Film & TV Festival.^[10][12][1] Later that month, Neon acquired United States distribution rights to the film.^[13] The film is scheduled to be released in the United States on September 12, 2025.^[14]

It received positive reviews from the press and critics after premiering at SXSW.^[3]

The film is slated to have its Canadian premiere in the Midnight Madness program at the 2025 Toronto International Film Festival.^[15]